Mobile devices include applications, such as web browsers, that can request content from content providers, such as website servers. Such content providers may wish to provide customized content to a mobile device based on the location of the mobile device. For example, an advertisement provider may wish to design a football-related advertisement for mobile device users attending a football game played in a football stadium. But to provide customized content based on the geographic locations of mobile devices, content providers must overcome certain obstacles.
For example, if a mobile phone user activates a web browser to request news content from a news website server, the website server may have a limited amount of time to provide customized content. The website server may not have time to request the mobile phone to identify the location of the mobile phone, to receive the identified location of the mobile phone, to process the received location of the mobile phone, to select customized content for a specific intended audience based on the processed location, and to convey this customized content to the mobile device. This timing problem can be addressed by requiring the mobile device to determine its own location in advance.
Although determining the location of a mobile device in advance can be helpful for providing customized content, accurately determining the location can require a significant time and resources for the mobile device and the network for the mobile device. If the mobile device is not moving, such a consumption of significant time and resources for the mobile device and the network is often a waste of time and resources.